While some of these are benign. Some are just down right disturbing. The following are just a few reasons to steer clear of processed foods. There are far more than these, but this is a start.



1. Gelatin - A protein from animal skins.

2. Castoreum - castor anal sacs from female beavers. EEWWWW! You'll find it in items labeled natural flavors that are Raspberry or Vanilla but don't have either item actually in them. It will only be labeled "Natural Flavors", Yogurt anyone, LOL!

3. Mechanically Separated Meat - A process of forcing bones thru a strainer to extract anything they can. Tiny bone fragments and cartilage included. Mmmm Hot Dogs...

4. Cochineal Extract - AKA Carmine. A red dye derived from the shells of cochineal insects. They are shaken to death, dried, and added to water to create the dye.

5. Carbon Dioxide - Pumped into meat packages to keep the meat pink. They are starting to stop this in some places.

6. TBHQ - A preservative that has been shown to cause cancer in lab rats.

7. Shellac (AKA Confectioner's Glaze) - Derived from the sticky excretions of the Kerria lacca insect. It is used to shine apples and tomatoes, but is also used in jellybeans and candy corn among other things.

8. Propylene Glycol- A preservative that  is also an ingredient in anti-freeze, but probably won't kill you.

9. Saltwater Injections - Usually found in packaged chicken. It's used to enhance flavor and to increase the weight before sale. 

10. Cellulose - AKA wood pulp. Used as a filler in low fat foods. When they say it tastes like cardboard it probably does, lol. You can't digest it. It's found in shredded cheese to keep the stands separate and in ice cream.

11. Viruses - Added to packaged deli meat. It's used to kill listeria and is labeled as bacteriophage preparation. 

12. L-Cysteine - Duck feathers that are used to soften the dough of breads and baked goods. Yum...

13. Ammonia - This is a big one. Found in what is now being called pink slime. Used to sanitize the less desirable meat trimmings that are bacteria laden and would otherwise be deemed as scraps.

14. Pink Slime - The meat fat trimmings are melted and run thru a centrifuge to extract the last little bits of meat. Then they are sprayed with ammonia and added to packaged ground beef. Select grocers and restaurants are choosing not to use it after a recent media uproar.

15. Bisphenol-A -   AKA BPA. This is still found in the lining of canned goods and is especially problematic with acidic foods like tomatoes.

16. Antibiotics - Found in abundance in non- organic livestock. Due to the horrid, unnatural  living conditions
 that the animals are forced to live in, they have to pump them full of antibiotics just to keep them alive until slaughter.

17. Silicone Dioxide - Now this one probably won't hurt you. It's sand, like from the beach. It's in Pam, coffee creamer, and a lot of other things. 

18. Carrageenan - A seaweed extract used to thicken and keep things from separating. Found in milk, chicken, and a lot of other foods. It is a known carcinogen.

With the school year fast approaching I thought I'd share a little about why we made the decision to homeschool. Now, I don't look down on people who don't homeschool, these are our reasons. A lot of people believe they need two incomes (more on that in a later post), or just have zero desire to homeschool their children. I think it's a personal decision that should be made by both parents and is best done on a case by case basis. Our main motivating factor is the unnatural environment in which these children are thrust into, followed by curriculum, lack of moral guidance, and lastly the germs.

Think about it, children are forced to spend the school year and 8 hours of the day in a classroom of children that are only their own age, on totally different learning levels, and with only one teacher to sometimes upwards of 30 students. How is that model supposed to succeed? Teachers are stretched thin, students are bored, & well..... it's just a mess. When public schools were created (not that long ago) I don't think that their intention was to have the mess of a school system our country currently has.
In the real world when are you ever going to only interact with people of your own age? The peer pressure that situation creates is ridiculous. Not to mention the germs.... oh, the germs.

We, firmly believe in God, who has conveniently been kicked out of public school for fear of offending someone. Ummm, our country was founded on religious freedom. Where did we loose sight of that? I want my children to grow up with a strong moral compass.

We value a tight knit family unit, we want our children to be each other's best friends. We don't want them to see each other after school for 2 hours, say a few words during dinner, & repeat the next day. We want to RAISE our own children. Not leave it in the hands of strangers.

We believe that no two children are the same and they should not be thrust into an educational one size fits all model. The Lord called us to teach our children. I believe ultimately, weather homeschooled or not it's our job to teach them.

Children need time to use their imagination. People are saying it ALL the time. No one has any imagination or creativity anymore. We don't want to raise robots, who don't push the envelope, who aren't hungry to learn.

We want our children to want to learn. We want them to hunger for knowledge and be able to fend for themselves and seek out the answers to questions they might have. To be self- reliant. Not to just spout out memorized answers to question on standardized tests, that don't really matter to anyone in real life situations. We want them to be forward thinkers, problem solvers, great assets to society as a whole.

Our children are smart and could probably still make it work in public school, but I don't believe they would reach their full potential and burn out at an early age. They are still at the age that they love to learn. I don't want them to loose that. I watched with my own eyes as my oldest lost that. We pulled him out of public school in the middle of 5th grade when I found out he couldn't do multiplication or division, yet they were using calculators. What sense does that make? When he returned to public school in 7th grade I'm happy to report he tested ahead of most of his peers.

My oldest, we'll call him bookworm, will be the only one in public school this year. Our local high school offers college courses during the high school years so we felt that it would be better for him to take those courses now for free since we would have to pay out of pocket otherwise. We also feel that he is at an age that hopefully he knows right from wrong and can think for himself. I pray we are right.

Here is a diagram on some statistics about homeschooling that might surprise you. Homeschooling is growing at a very quick rate. I'm not trying to convert anyone, just trying to give you an idea as to why someone might consider going this route.



Source: TopMastersInEducation.com

We used to vaccinate, heck we were model patients. I scheduled my appointments months in advance so I wouldn't forget and they had their shots usually the day they were due. But, that all changed when I had my fourth child. We call him Monster Morgan because he literally looks like a miniature football player. That kid is cut, and has been since the day he was born. And man is he a tough little guy, nothing stops him, he falls down and he just gets up and keeps going.

At his two month vaccines my views changed a little. My pediatrician had talked me into giving him the new vaccine for rotovirus. He claimed that he gave it to his kids and felt it was safe.... fast forward to one minute later and he projectile vomited with such force I almost dropped him. At the time he had mild reflux so I figured it just didn't sit well and we went on our way. His four month vaccines went the same way, instant vomit. Now, that's not the end of the world, it's what happened 30 minutes later that would be a defining moment in our lives.

30 minutes after his vaccines I got home and was feeding him when he started shaking. I thought at the time that maybe it was just some shivering because we were in front of the air vent and chocked it up to nothing and maybe I was thinking it was more than it was. You know, when you are sleep deprived you start to wonder if you are exaggerating things. Well, my worst fears were confirmed when it happened again the next day. I called the Dr's office and they told me to take him to the ER. So I did.

We only had to wait a few minutes in the ER and they almost immediately wanted to do a spinal tap and give him an IV, which I reluctantly agreed to. Who was I to question the Dr's, right?...... Then, they proceeded to tell me he needed to go by ambulance to the Children's hospital across the river, SAY WHAT?!? Mind you, we only had one vehicle and 4 kids. My hubby, we'll call him Mountain Man, was at work or with the other kids.... I don't know, not important, I was sleep deprived and in panic mode. I politely asked if they could remove the IV so I could drive him myself to which they not so politely said I could not refuse it was mandatory..... looking back I almost laugh that I let them bully me around like that, but I digress.

So, off in the ambulance we went for our weekend in Hell, no literally, it was awful! They refused to let me feed him, then wouldn't bring me a pump. So, I ended up with 104 degree fever, ughhh mastitis anyone.... fun. He was miserable and kept messing with his IV, and would cry himself to sleep because he was starving. I don't know about you, but looking back, I wish I would have stood up to them at least a little. I call that child abuse to starve a healthy baby don't you? Don't get me wrong the nurses were excellent, especially one that I remember that finally brought me a pump after taking my temp and realizing what ass-hats they were (please excuse my language :) ) The only upside was that since they had no idea what was going wrong (no one believed it was the vaccines....) he was in isolation so we got our own room, THANK GOD! If I had an actual ill child I would take them there in a heartbeat and I have.

So, after I believe it was 3 days and a multitude of tests, he was deemed healthy and sent home with orders to have an EEG, and see a couple of specialists. After all the appointments and tests were done, it was concluded that more likely than not it was the vaccines, BUT, no one wants to go on record as saying so and it would not be listed in his chart. SAY WHAT!?! You read that right. They did not want it on record that it was the vaccines, straight from the horses mouth. Which lends the conclusion, how many other patients has this happened to, and why the cover up? Wonder if we'll ever know?

Luckily for us we are in Illinois, and due to his medical history and our religious beliefs that you are not to knowingly harm your body, God's temple, we are able to refuse vaccines now. So, my 3 youngest are unvaccinated (with the exception of Monster who has 4 months worth). My 3 oldest are up to date, but only because they were in public school and Pertusis/Whooping Cough was going around. That was a tough decision...... This year we are homeschooling, so hopefully we will steer clear of the so-called vaccinated children that got the illness even though they were vaccinated...... I'll let you figure that one out, lol.

Thank God his shaking spells only lasted for a year, he now seems healthy, though we often wonder if he is exhibiting signs of autism. He also over the course of the year had to have two hernia surgeries and was rushed to the ER for intuccuseption, which I have no idea if that was in any way related to the vaccines or not but none of my other boys had hernias so who knows. So, it's just a wait and see game at this point. I pray that I didn't let them do too much harm to my precious baby boy. To this day, he get's extremely upset if he is hungry, and I don't blame him.

Now, this isn't an anti-vaccine post. That's a decision you and your family need to make. I'm just letting you know our story. We are not crazy hippies or anti-government crazies. We are a normal family just trying to do what's best and praying we are doing a good job. I suggest googling information on both sides of the debate and be the judge for yourself. In my opinion they do more harm than good, and are just introducing toxins into healthy babies systems that have no business being there. Mercury anti-freeze cocktail anyone?

I do have his shaking attacks on video somewhere and if/when I come across them I will post them so you can see that I am totally not making any of this up.

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